Military personnel often work in hazardous environments and are frequently exposed to ballistic threats such as bullets and fragments from explosive devices such as bombs and roadside IEDs (improvised explosive devices). Personnel operating in these environments may be issued with a sleeveless protective jacket for wearing in combination with standard military uniform. The protective jacket comprises front and rear pockets each extending over the front and rear torso regions for receiving a ballistic resistant plate, typically composed of hard armor, as in a ceramic, with a composite of multiple layers of ballistic resistant fabric such as an aramid material and embedded epoxy resin which are heat pressed together. The front and rear protective plates assist in preventing bullets and fragments from damaging vital organs.
In more dangerous conditions, typically geared towards explosive device and bomb disposal applications, military personnel may be provided with suits including full body protective armour. These suits typically include a ballistic resistant plate that extends to cover the pelvic region of a wearer. These suits also typically include multiple layers of high strength fabric that provides protection below the groin region.
It has been discovered by the applicant, that the sleeveless protective jacket worn in combination with the standard military uniform does not provide sufficient protection below the pelvis and groin region of a wearer from projectiles, such as sand and other fragmentation debris resulting from the detonation of an explosive. This has caused serious injury to the pelvic and groin regions of armoured personnel. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a protective garment that can be worn in combination with a sleeveless protective jacket, and that provides protection to the pelvic and/or groin regions of a wearer from projectiles
While some prior art solutions have extended the ballistic resistant plate lower, this tends to impede movement. Other prior art solutions have provided for protective pants that attach directly to the bullet resistant plate or other underlying garments; this creates a barrier for the mobility of the wearer. Accordingly, there is a further need in the art for a protective garment that can be easily donned and doffed in combination with other protective military suits.
Prior art protective garments also suffer from the disadvantage of becoming effectively useless following an incident causing a leg injury. In this situation, it may be more critical to be able to doff the pants in a quick time to apply treatment options or otherwise manage blood loss. Accordingly, there is a further need in the art for protective pants that can facilitate post-incident injury treatment.